Goal time · Marathon
A 3:15:00 marathon works out to 7:26 per mile, or 4:37 per kilometer. Below are the mile splits for a slightly faster second half, the halfway time to aim for, and the training paces that go with this goal.
The numbers
This plan starts about 1% slower than goal pace and finishes about 1% faster, so the second half is slightly quicker than the first. The elapsed column is what your watch should read as you pass each marker.
| Mile | Pace for That Mile | Elapsed Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7:31 | 7:31 |
| 2 | 7:31 | 15:02 |
| 3 | 7:31 | 22:33 |
| 4 | 7:30 | 30:03 |
| 5 | 7:30 | 37:33 |
| 6 | 7:29 | 45:02 |
| 7 | 7:29 | 52:31 |
| 8 | 7:29 | 1:00:00 |
| 9 | 7:28 | 1:07:28 |
| 10 | 7:28 | 1:14:56 |
| 11 | 7:27 | 1:22:23 |
| 12 | 7:27 | 1:29:50 |
| 13 | 7:26 | 1:37:16 |
| Halfway (13.1) | 7:26 | 1:38:05 |
| 14 | 7:26 | 1:44:42 |
| 15 | 7:26 | 1:52:08 |
| 16 | 7:25 | 1:59:33 |
| 17 | 7:25 | 2:06:58 |
| 18 | 7:24 | 2:14:23 |
| 19 | 7:24 | 2:21:47 |
| 20 | 7:24 | 2:29:10 |
| 21 | 7:23 | 2:36:34 |
| 22 | 7:23 | 2:43:56 |
| 23 | 7:22 | 2:51:19 |
| 24 | 7:22 | 2:58:41 |
| 25 | 7:22 | 3:06:02 |
| 26 | 7:21 | 3:13:24 |
| Finish (26.2) | 7:21 | 3:15:00 |
Measured against the latest published results of 214 marathons on RunSesh.
One edition per race, from RunSignup races with published results. Fields include walkers and charity entrants, so this describes these races, not every runner in the country.
These are the paces for a runner who can already race a 3:15:00 marathon, worked out with Daniels and Gilbert's VDOT formulas, the method behind the training tables in Daniels' Running Formula. If your most recent race is slower, train at the paces on the page for that time.
Most of your weekly miles, including the long run.
A steady run of about 20 minutes, or longer repeats with short rests.
Repeats of 3 to 5 minutes, with easy jogs between.
Santos-Lozano et al. (2014), analyzing 190,228 New York City Marathon finishes from 2006 to 2011, found that runners at every performance level slowed as the race progressed, and that the fastest runners showed the smallest speed variation across 5K segments. Building a slight speed reserve into the back half reflects that pattern. At the halfway marker, confirm your position relative to where the plan has you, since drifting ahead there leaves less room to manage the second half.
Daniels and Gilbert's VDOT formulas treat a 42:17 10K as the same performance as a 3:15 marathon. If your current 10K fitness sits near that mark, the marathon goal aligns with what you can sustain aerobically.
The RRCA pace chart developed by Amby Burfoot is pointed on this: "don't begin with a future goal time. To do so increases risk of injury and/or overtraining." Basing your paces on a recent result keeps the plan grounded in current fitness.
USATF certification measures courses along the "Shortest Possible Route," so runners who stray from that line cover additional distance. Pobiruchin et al. (2017) found GPS sport watches averaged 42.33 km against the official 42.195 km, a gap of 135 meters. At this pace that extra distance accounts for 37 seconds, so a watch logging that much additional ground could read slightly faster than 7:26 while you're precisely on goal.
Daniels and Gilbert's formulas treat a 1:33:40 half marathon as equivalent to a 3:15 marathon. Comparing that mark against a half marathon you've run under race conditions tells you whether the aerobic engine is currently there for the full distance.
